The global iGambling market was valued at 66.7 billion USD last year, and this is according to the IMARC Group. Based on this release, IMARC is still expecting that this market will continue to grow until the year 2026.
2020 was quite a strong year for the online casino gaming sector and this was also somehow because of the pandemic. Lockdowns and quarantine periods made more people stay at home and try to find new indoor activities ways to entertain themselves. Many found entertainment in playing Live casino games online. True enough, many online casinos reported a surge in web traffic when the pandemic began.
And so, this year will still be another good year for the gambling industry. With more people likely to play casino games online, gambling companies are out there, doing their best to get new customers. Here are the online casino trends that we will see more of this year.
Mobile Gaming and Gambling
More and more people have been gaming and gambling with their mobile devices and it is easy to understand why. Mobile devices like smartphones are more accessible than ever. Smartphones are becoming cheaper yet powerful and the casino industry knows its potential.
Internet connection is also becoming more stable in different countries. The availability of the 5G connection will also help improve the overall mobile gaming and gambling experience of users. With a fast internet connection, better games could be available to a smartphone or mobile users.
Live Dealer Games
The pandemic has caused many land casinos to close down temporarily. Even if some of them are already back in business, most of them are still operating at a certain capacity. And so, people are looking for an alternative in experiencing playing casino games that are close to reality. With this, live dealer games are becoming more and more popular.
Back then, live dealer games are only mainly available to PC users. However, since mobile tech has greatly improved, even smartphone users can sit down on a virtual live casino table along with players from around the world.
Cryptocurrency Gambling
2020 has also been quite a year for the world of cryptocurrency. Bitcoin was able to beat its all-time high since 2017. By the end of last year, it was able to peak to around 30,000 US dollars. Currently, it’s been playing around the value of 55,000 to 60,000 US dollars.
Many experts predict that Bitcoin would still reach another all-time high before the year ends. With this, more and more people are showing interest in investing in cryptos and creating crypto wallets. As this happens, more people are trying to find ways on how they can spend their coins.
Some people would resort to crypto gambling. This is why today, there are already plenty of online casinos that accept cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Cardano, Ripple, and many more. There are even Bitcoin casinos that only cater to cryptocurrency users.
Legislation
As years go by, more and more countries and places are starting to embrace the gambling industry. The UK remains to have the biggest gambling market worldwide. It has relaxed gambling regulations compared to other countries.
However, more countries are following suit including the United States. In 2018, the Supreme Court of the US struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act or PASPA of 1992. This made sports betting federally legal and allows each state to decide on regulating the industry.
Today, there are now over 20 states with legal sports betting. This year, it is likely that more states will push for not only sports betting but also gambling legislation in general. Many states are now finding more ways to earn tax revenues to help with the pandemic situation and some of them are considering sports betting and gambling legislation. We may see more states move towards it this year.
Game Variety
More games are to be released this year. With plenty of online casino options out there, software developers are constantly creating games based on the demands of the players. Traditional slot machine games are still popular with gamblers, but today, there are so many varieties to choose from. Casino games may be console-like games in the coming years.
Conclusion
Overall, 2021 is poised to be another great year for the gambling industry. We can expect growth, more games to play, and more customers for these online casino operators. As the market grows, gamblers can also expect great competition between these casinos to win new customers and that equates to better promos and bonuses this year.
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